What were the most common first names in Irish records?

We hear or see people talk all the time of the most common first names. The majority of Roman Catholic parish records that I transcribe give the person only 1 first name, the majority of gravestone records give the person 1 first name.  I emphasize the Roman Catholic religion here because when I work with Church of Ireland records the people generally have two first names.

I am giving an analysis of the first names given to the people listed on gravestones in Mount Bolus here.  The cemetery is a public one.  Outside of that fact I have numerous tables of names and I have sorted the first names out many times and the most popular names stay the same regardless of what time frame we are talking about in parish records and on gravestones.  That will change in time as first names are much more varied today.

Here with Mount Bolus in Co. Offaly (King’s Co.) I have 730 first names on stones and I have looked at these.  Of these 730 names I have 131 first names, some of these are nick names (or with a letter excluded) of some others. I kept them separate. 63 of these names are female and 67 male. Interesting that proportions are almost equal.

Most common male name is John
Most common female name is Mary